Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1887-03-23

| grination the captain met them, and
telling OF Mr.. Milford to 60 aft and
see to something about which there
was no earthly hurry, undertook to
relieve him of his duty as ciccrone.
I As they came up tho companion,
Nellie. stumbling against Ralph,
squeezed his hand and whispered Az
plaisirr'
The Irritation of these two young
things for the rest of the day had to be
pantomimic; it was, therefore, the
more unrestrained. Ralph didn't wor-
ship the sea, but he was conscien-
tious officer, and wouldn't let his love,
which grew ierccr and fiercer, inter-
fere with his duties. Besides, the cap
tain took the greatest pains about his
fair charge, and kept sharp lookout
upon his fifth officer, whose eloquent
looks he considered to be in the worst
possible taste. An opportunity occurred
to them, however, just before the last
meal, when they met under shelterof a
friendly state-room.
II never knew" said she, ''that sail
ors were so nice. Do you know, sir, "
she added, putting her hands upon his
shoulders, ''that this uniform makes
you very handsomep believe that's
the only reason you're here at all. J."
A fool would not have caught her
violently to lis breast and kissed the
passionate lips and eyes which raised
themselves to level with his. Ralph
Rawson Milford was no fool.
II must go away" he whispered.
"When can we meet againP I shall
be on watch to night, and shall wan
der up and down thinking of nothing
but you. Come on deck early to-mor-
row, and shall be free"
mo-" said she; ''let me come on
deck while you are on watch. 1t will
be a very dark night, and I'll wear q
dark frock. There will be no moon
there was none last night. Do let me
| come"
impossible, darling! The rules are
Medic and Persiac. No one can let
you come on deck save the captain. 1t
would be ruin to me if you came with
out leave. You wouldn't like that,
dear, would youP"
"Oh! very well" How maddening
those lips were when they poutedl
ave no doubt the captain will let me
come up during his watch, and I'll
come then. How horrid you are! i
don't believe you care for me one bit.
There will be no one on this deck but the
two men watching with you, and they
couldn't see me. came up last night
and no one saw me. Well-shall |
come during your watch or the cap
tain's?"
Nothing more was said-in words.
Ralph was madly tempted, as he went
forward, to dance about and shout
aloud. 1t was pitch-dark night,
though the air was clear of fog. The
two lovers sat beneath the bridge, and
he told her in whispers all about him
self, and how fatal it would be if ii
were discovered that he had yielded to
her prayer and let her come to him on
deck. But what did any thing matter
while her soft, smooth fingers twined
and knotted themselves in his, and her
glory of gold hair was the only thing
between her check and his shoulder.
Suddenly there was great jar and
a dull, crashing report. Nellie crouched
in the shadow as Milford sprang to his
feet and learned from the men on
watch that the Paragon had been run
into. In a moment all was confusion,
or apparent confusion. The captain,
cool as if he had been taking his seat
at dinner, came on deck and said in q
loud, calm voice to the terrified pass
engers:
1--WE have been run into and the
Paragon is sinking. There is no danger
to us personally. The sea is calm and
the boats arc in perfect order and pre-
paration for such an accident. In an
hour we shall be on board the ship
that has run us down which is waiting
for us close by" Then. under his
calm and careful orders, passengers
and crew embarked in the Paragon's
boats and in very short time the
little fotilla was pulling away from
the disappearing liner But the ship
that had sunk them was nowhere to be
found! Favored by the darkness, she
had got away, without stopping to
learn what had become of the Para
gon and her living freight Nellie and
Ralph Milford were together in one OF
the boats. No inquiry had yet been
made into the disaster; but the two
men on watch, who were in the same
boat with them, said they had sudden.
ly seen the lights of a steamer close to
them, and as they sprang forward to
hail her and give the alarm, she had
struck them, and when they recovered
from their momentary CONSERVATION
she had disappeared!
"You heart said Nellie to the ter.
ror-strickcn fifth officer. whose side
she had never lcft-'thcy didn't see
her till she struck us. You must sup.
port their statement, or You are @
ruined man. Your certificate will be
Cancelled, and, oh Ralph! if the truth
should be known, think of my ever
lasting shame! For my sake, if you
love me, save my good name and
yours, and back up their story. You
see they are both agreed, and you were
further from where she struck us thar
they were"